why is digital marketing important

The Importance of Online Marketing

If you’re not marketing your business online you are missing a huge opportunity to grow your business. No matter how great your product or service is, without digital marketing efforts, you’re more likely to stand still and be ignored than to move forward and find customers or clients.

Digital Marketing Pays Off!

Online marketing is a powerful tool for building your brand, connecting to consumers, and getting leads. Now more than ever, consumers rely on the infinitely large world wide web to find information about your products and services.

Social media and reviews play a role in online marketing

Social Media Use is on the Rise Since 2005, social networking has been the fastest-growing online activity. 66% of adult Internet users access social media. This has grown significantly from only 8% of online adults using social media in 2005. In fact, today Internet users spend 1 out of 6 online minutes using social media. That is 712% growth in 7 years!

Online reviews and recommendations are playing an important role in how consumers make their purchasing decisions. In fact, 76% of consumers reported considering online reviews when determining which local business to use. 72% of consumers surveyed said they trust online reviews as much as they trust personal recommendations. And 52% of consumers said they were more likely to use a local business that has a positive reputation.

Consumers watch over 200 billion videos online per month. Most of these videos are from YouTube. In 2011, there were 3 billion hours of video watched per month, over 4 billion video views per day, and about 60 hours of video uploaded every minute. Plus, with more consumers looking for video content online, YouTube is now the second largest search engine, with 3 billion unique searches per month.

The Shift to Online Marketing means local businesses are now spending more of their advertising budgets on online, interactive, and digital advertising, with a predicted growth from $21.2 billion in 2011 to $35 billion by 2015.

How online marketing can help your business

You’ll make more sales

“No sales, no company” – Mark Cuban

When people know your business exists, they’re much more likely to become your customers. If your marketing efforts are being done right you should see results shortly after, but do not be discouraged if you do not see immediate results. Remember if it’s worth having it’s worth waiting for.

You’ll increase awareness

Sometimes your best customers might see your advertisements hundreds of times before they buy anything. Many people see an ad or online recommendation and, instead of buying straight away, remember the brand name for future reference.

Raising awareness plants your business’s brand, its product, and its benefits in the mind of your target audience. By raising awareness through digital marketing, you’ll build a huge audience of potential customers who know who you are, know what you can offer and know exactly where to find you.

You’ll make consumers trust you

“People share, read and generally engage more with any type of content when it’s surfaced through friends and people they know and trust.” – Malorie Lucich, Facebook

Who do you trust more: your friend or a complete stranger? The more well known your company becomes, the more people will trust you. The more people trust you, the more likely they are to buy your products and services.

Building trust isn’t something that can be done overnight. Think of the companies that you trust. The companies we trust the most are the ones we’ve been exposed to – either through advertising or by doing business with them.

The earlier you start marketing your business online, the longer your target audience will have known you. Start early and build a relationship with your target market and people will respond by trusting your business to live up to its image.

You’ll build a powerful brand

“A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well.” – Jeff Bezo

You may ask yourself “Do I want to market to sell more products or to build a brand that is easily recognizable?” The smart business owner will do both.

The ultimate goal of your digital marketing campaigns should be to have customers come to you. Big brands like Google and Facebook don’t need to remind people that they exist because their customers already know them and trust them enough to make them part of their daily lives.

Branding is what separates your business from your competitors. It’s what makes a customer choose you instead of someone else. It’s your business’s style, reputation and culture all rolled into one. Brands are essential, and without marketing your business you’ll struggle to develop a memorable, powerful brand.

Remember that you are not in this alone. Crosby Interactive is here to assist you in all of your Digital Marketing needs. Call today for a FREE Consultation –(502) 767-3014.